Missy Is Now (Kind Of) the First Female 'Doctor Who'

Missy has officially termed herself the next “Doctor Who,” going all-in on the show’s titular pun in a way the real Doctor rarely does. Taking the TARDIS, Bill (Pearl Mackie), and Nardole (Matt Lucas), Missy puts herself right in the middle of the action in a final episode of Doctor Who Season 10. Obviously, Missy isn’t actually the new Doctor — but she definitely seems more than a little gleeful at the prospect.

It seems Michelle Gomez’s Missy will be going by the name “Doctor Who” in the second-to-last episode of Season 10, “World Enough and Time.” A clip released on Sunday revealed Missy’s new name, and in an introduction to the episode on Wednesday, showrunner Steven Moffat revealed that, more than anything, the Doctor wants Missy to be a good person.

“And [Missy’s] starting to want that too,” Moffat said. “The consequences for that are going to destroy a lot of lives.”

At the news that Peter Capaldi would be leaving Doctor Who behind, many fans and former Who actors have called for the next Doctor to be the first female Time Lord in the titular role. As Capaldi’s 12th Doctor is expected to regenerate at the end of “World Enough and Time,” the fact that the next Doctor’s identity has yet to be revealed has some fans thinking that the show, after 50 years, might finally put a woman at the controls of the TARDIS.

But, for the time being, fans will have to be fine with Missy playing games.

Doctor Who, “World Enough and Time”, part one of the two-part season 10 finale, airs on BBC America on Saturday June 24 at 9pm EST.